Daily Times

Sir: Recently I had chance to visit a Basic Health Unit (BHU) located in a village near Sheikhupura called Lagar Pind. It was distressing to see that the medical facilities in this part of the region are deplorable. Besides poor sanitary and hygienic conditions, the medical facility lacked the basic emergency facilities in terms of medicines and trained staff. This place is only serving as a treatment centre for very minor injuries and serves to direct people to the nearest Rural Health Centre (RHC) in Mananwala, which is at a distance of several miles. It was astonishing to learn that the basic injury treatment medicine Pyodine was being purchased by the collective donations of the medical staff. However the building is decently built and can easily be turned into an excellent primary medical care facility with a very small investment. Since the Punjab government is very aggressively reforming the health structure of the province, it is highly recommended that such facilities should not be left at the whims and wishes of local officials, rather local representatives should be nominated in the region and they should be given the task of transforming these physical structures into true healthcare facilities. These individuals should be accountable to the public as well as the government.

IBNE SALEEM

Lahore